THE IFSP’S 2018 CONFERENCE, “Efficiency and innovation – the way forward for Malta’s Financial Services Industry” will be held on 15 February, at the Xara Lodge, Rabat, with registrations starting from 08:30.

The conference will cover areas of immediate interest to most practitioners. There will be a session dedicated to the upcoming Moneyval evaluation, and what can be expected from it. This session, to be moderated by Juanita Bencini, will include Dr Anton Bartolo from the MFSA, Alfred Zammit from the FIAU and Dr Michael Stellini from the Council of Europe amongst other speakers.

The conference will not ignore what has become one of the more pressing concerns for many financial services firms in Malta: how to recruit, manage and retain the staff members each firm requires. This year, the IFSP conference will include a session dealing with just this issue, with a panel including Paulianne Nwoko (Apex), and others who are running particularly effective HR programmes in financial services and related spheres.

Financial services today are changing fast, through the development of new technological services and delivery channels as well as the ever evolving regulatory and compliance environment. This will be the focus of yet another panel session, with a two-fold brief: the regulatory landscape and the impact of IT on financial services with the development of, among other things, blockchain technologies and cryptocurrencies. This panel will be moderated by Wayne Pisani, with people like Dr Abdallah Kablan, Dr Ian Gauci, Dr Christopher Buttigieg and Kenneth Farrugia among the speakers contributing to this discussion.

Other items to be discussed include a look at the changing tax landscape and the way capital markets are evolving. These are all issues that have the potential to impact the business of each and every practitioner working out of Malta.

The Malta Stock Exchange will be hosting a reception for conference participants, also at the Xara Lodge, immediately after the conference draws to a close at about 17:00, providing an opportunity for further networking in a less formal environment. The conference as a whole is supported by FinanceMalta.

Registrations will be opened later this week; this year, there will be an online registration form. The aim is to make it easier for members – and indeed others – to provide their details and ensure that we receive the registration fast and efficiently. Payment of fees, however, will remain now as before, either by cheque or direct transfer.
Registration fees remain at last year’s levels: IFSP members pay €120; non-members pay €150; and students pay €60. There is also a group rate: for the registration of five or more people from the same firm, the fee is €90.
There are further benefits for people registering before 31 January 2018: the schedule above becomes IFSP members: €100; non-members: €130; and students: €50.

The Institute of Financial Services Practitioners is an association of professionals working across the entire range of financial services. The Institute's membership includes lawyers and accountants as well as professionals from other professions.

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